Charmaine Mignon S. Yalong, Commercial Attaché of the Philippine Trade and Investment Center (PTIC) in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, has delivered a compelling presentation on the topic “Opportunities Awaiting International and Filipino Investors in the Philippines” during the inaugural Philippine Economic and Investment Summit (PEIS) in the 9th edition of the Philippine Property and Investment Exhibition (PPIE).
In the first part of Yalong’s presentation, she emphasized that sectors like construction, export, and manufacturing fuels the annual economic growth of the Philippines.
“I’d like to highlight construction because this is something the UAE government and private sector can come in. Real estate and infrastructure are something that is highly efficient in the UAE, and this is something they can support us. So we have been looking for a lot of infrastructure investors in the Philippines,” she said.
On the other hand, the Commercial Attaché also mentioned that the biggest challenge in the Philippines now is the high inflation rate. One of the southeast Asian countries is really experiencing 3-5% inflation rate, and the Philippines is higher at 7.6% as of March 2023.
“It’s a bit high… but one of the initiatives of the Philippine government is to provide subsidies and assistance especially to our farmers. We anticipate that with the continuous efforts of the Philippine government to support our producers, this will be tempered at least this year until next year,” she explained.
Despite the challenges, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) is very happy to report that our foreign direct investments have been continuously growing.
In line with these developments, Yalong shared that they have initiated UAE-specific policies. Last year, they signed the PH-UAE investment promotion and protection agreement.
“As much as this is a promotion, this is primarily about protection. Our UAE investors, if you come to the Philippines, you will be assured that should there be any difficulties into coming in, if you have any disputes especially if you have a Filipino partner, even with the government, you are protected by this agreement because this sets forth the mechanism for dispute settlement and the general protection,” Yalong said.
Further in her presentation, she highlighted DTI’s top priorities for this administration namely: to create programs for MSMEs, foster industries geared towards domestic demand, promote and support regional development, ensure availability of accessible and affordable food, reconfigure our PH expert industries into industry clusters, settle job mismatches, improve the ease of doing business, attract and expand exports, protect and empower consumers, and be a more agile and energetic department.
Yalong also mentioned that the top business opportunities in the Philippines for foreign investors are food and beverage, personal care products, marketing through tech (online shopping and other online transactions), and franchising.
“Also, something to consider for all the franchisers, the market is always very complex when you start, so research is very important. Not just because another brand found success, it will mean the same for you — sometimes it’s a hit or miss. We would never know success if we don’t try,” she stated.
Concluding her presentation, she stressed the importance of having a reputable and legitimate importer.
“I call on our aspiring traders, please always check with us before you choose your importer. We know the major players in this market and we’re happy to connect you, so don’t try to do it alone,” Yalong said.
The recently concluded PPIE 2023 is the largest and longest-running property and investment exhibition in the Middle East and has gathered thousands of attendees from different emirates with a notable presence of high-level delegates from the Philippines and the UAE.
